WEST LAFAYETTE — Eden Ewing believes his athleticism, ball skills and midrange shooting touch will make him a valuable forward for Purdue men's basketball.

Last season, however, Ewing's Tyler (Texas) Junior College squad needed the 6-8, 210-pound Houston-area native in a different role. He spent much of his season at center, which may have helped the Apaches, but didn't necessarily showcase Ewing for the next level.

"Wherever you're at, you have to step up and lay your part," said Ewing, who on Wednesday officially became the third recruit in Purdue's 2017 class. "I'm not really a center, but I had to do what I had to do."

Ewing's signing is expected to be finalized Thursday. He joins Sunrise Christian Academy (Bel Aire, Kan.) big man Matt Haarms and Brewester Academy (Wolfeboro, N.H.) forward Aaron Wheeler, who both signed Wednesday: the first day of the NCAA's early signing period. The signing class should eventually include at least four players.

None of those three had committed to Purdue as of a month ago. A handful of other high-profile targets had Purdue among their final considerations but chose other offers.

Boilermakers coach Matt Painter said last month he's taken a more patient approach to recruiting.

"Our old football coach Joe Tiller said, 'Don't be blinded by your lack of talent,' " Painter said. "Man we need a lot of size or we need a lot of speed, and you go get speed and you go get size, then all of a sudden you don't have the right guys in your program. On the surface they felt like the right guys to you. You do your homework, or maybe you missed out on a couple of guys and took a guy.

"We've got into that mode before where we missed out on couple of a guys in recruiting and we just held serve. We haven't moved on to the next guy. We've waited, and that's been the best thing."

Unselfishness is among the first adjectives Tyler coach Mike Marquis uses to describe Ewing. Beyond playing outside of his role for the good of the team, Ewing also has impressed Marquis with other leadership intangibles.

"He's high energy — positive with his teammates when things aren't going great," Marquis said. "He's encouraging them in the proper vein. Most of the time when kids get frustrated, they just yell at each other. He's a lot more encouraging along those lines."

Ewing averaged 9.9 points and 6.1 rebounds while shooting 30.8 percent from 3-point range over 28 games for Tyler last season. He originally signed with Nevada out of Richmond (Texas) High School, but never joined the program.

While Ewing ran into foul trouble while trying to play center last season, Marquis said he also showed a toughness that should help him transition to the next level.

"It's rare in this day and age, but he seeks contact," Marquis said. "He doesn't avoid it. That allows him tot set a physical tone in his play.

"He's very, very skilled. Good footwork. Shoots the ball with good form. Has a variety of moves. Versatility is the key to why he's so good."

Along with Haarms and Wheeler, the trio would give the Boilermakers an immediate injection of size to offset the potential departures of forwards Caleb Swanigan and Vincent Edwards and center Isaac Haas to the NBA draft.

Haarms became the first member of Purdue's class Oct. 5. The 7-2, 224-pound native of The Netherlands projects as a contributor at both power forward and center.

Wheeler followed with his commitment on Oct. 18. The 6-7, 180-pound prep school student committed after visiting Purdue, his only official visit. He could be an asset both on the wing and at the 4, somewhat like Vincent Edwards.

Purdue could sign additional players for this class, with Evanston, Ill. guard Nojel Eastern and Miami Christian power forward Felipe Haase among top targets.